Braised Red Cabbage with Star Anise

I was never really a fan of cabbage up until a few years ago. I had a fantastic Sunday dinner at Busta House Hotel in Brae, Shetland, and they served an incredibly delicious braised red cabbage on the side. I’ve been hooked ever since, especially since red cabbage often makes an appearance in my veg box this time of year.

It’s a pretty vegetable, isn’t it – with its ribbons of deep purple and white. Cutting this cabbage in half reminded me that years and years ago I’d taken a fancy to attending art college in Halifax, Nova Scotia. One of the requirements for your entry portfolio was to draw the cross section of a cabbage. I ended up not applying because they didn’t have student accommodation, and as I was only 16 the thought of living on my own in a flat in the city terrified me.

The secret to a good braised red cabbage, I believe, is slow cooking, the addition of something sweet, something sour and an apple – a sharp eating apple like a Cox or Granny Smith.

Last year, around this time, I also discovered how fantastically easy it was to make braised red cabbage in my Redmond Multicooker. Have you ever been slaving over a hot stove all day preparing a Thanksgiving or Christmas meal and wish you had an extra hob (or set of hands)? My Redmond Multicooker has come to the rescue on many such occasion! It’s an extra hob that you don’t have to worry about – a bit like a slow cooker, but with many more handy functions.

All you need to do is soften the red onion in a bit of butter for a few minutes before stirring in the rest of the ingredients, shutting the lid, and ignoring the entire thing until the recipe has cooked, leaving you free to do other things, for example, go for a walk up the hill behind your house and enjoy the view of the first snowfall of the year!

The Redmond Multicooker also has a keep warm function which automatically switches on when the automatic cooking program has finished, meaning if you’ve spent too much time up said hill (and checking in on your poorly neighbour next door) it won’t burn.

I’ve added some spices and a squeeze of orange juice to my braised cabbage recipe – a whole cinnamon stick, a few whole star anise and some whole allspice berries – just to give it that little hint of warming spice. Make sure you remove these before serving (you could even put them into a small muslin bag before cooking, to make this easier).

How do you make your braised red cabbage? Do you have any recipe tips to share? Let me know in the comments!

Melt the butter and fry the sliced red onion for five to seven minutes, stirring frequently, until the onion softens but does not colour.

Add the remaining ingredients and stir well to combine.

Select the Stew function and set the time for 60 minutes. Close the lid.

If you are eating this on the day, the Redmond Multicooker will keep this braised red cabbage warm until you need it. If not, open the lid, leave the cabbage to cool, remove the cinnamon stick, star anise and allspice berries, and then freeze in portions.

To reheat, add a small knob of butter to the Redmond Multicooker bowl and add the defrosted red cabbage along with a splash of water. Stew until reheated - about 10 minutes.

LINKING UP WITH A FEW FOOD BLOGGING CHALLENGESSlow Cooked Challenge by Farmersgirl Kitchen (Theme: meat-free)
Cook Once, Eat Twice by Searching for Spice

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I rarely cook cabbage but this looks gorgeous and I love the spices you’ve used in it. The Multicooker sounds great as I love my slow cooker but like the sound of something you can do even more things with. Thank you for linking up with Cook Once Eat Twice.Corina recently posted…Tomato and Nigella Seed Soda Bread

That’s so funny, Elizabeth. I made braised red cabbage in my slow cooker yesterday, cinnamon stick and cloves but otherwise pretty much the same. We also had a view of the first snow fall on the hills. Thanks for joining us for the Slow Cooked Challenge.Janice recently posted…Designer Knives, Christmas Chocolates and a Liqueur Giveaway

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